15 February 2009
Antrim hurlers got their National Hurling League campaign off to a winning start when they travelled to Portaferrry and beat Down by 1-19 to 0-15 in Sunday’s Division 2 tie.
Seven points separated the teams at the end, but in truth it was much tougher for the Saffrons that the scoreline suggests, with two incidents on either side of the half-time interval having a big bearing on the outcome.
With the game entering first-half injury time, and Antrim leading by four points, a harmless looking long ball by Brendan Herron somehow deceived the normally reliable Down goalkeeper Gabriel Clarke and spilled over the line for an Antrim goal.
Shortly after the break, and with Down starting to peg back their arrears, their top player Paul Braniff seemed certain to score when a ball rebounded to him off the Antrim upright just outside the small ‘square’. Braniff met the ball beautifully but with the net gaping his fiercely struck shot rebounded off the crossbar and out to safety and from then on Antrim were never really troubled.
In the end the real difference between the two sides was the accuracy of midfielder Paul Shiels who contributed eleven points of the Antrim total, nine of them from frees which he slotted over from all distances.
With Shiels and his midfielder partner Brendan Herron getting on top in their area the Saffrons held the upper-hand for most of the opening half, but it took a late flurry, and Herron’s fortuitous goal, to give them a seven point advantage at the break (1-11 to 0-7).
On the resumption Down, who were by now reduced to fourteen men after having Stephen Johnston red carded on 22 minutes, began to battle back and had reduced the arrears to five when Braniff’s chance went a begging.
Antrim began to regain control again and with Shiels keeping the scoreboard ticking over with some beautifully struck frees the regained control to clinch their first brace of league points.
Others to show well for Antrim were Ryan McGarry in goal, Neil McAuley and CIaran Herron in defence and Michael Herron, PJ O’Connell, Karl Stewart, Eddie McCloskey and Joey Scullion up front.
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